Saturday, November 29, 2008

Few federal agencies are expected to undergo as radical a transformation under President-elect Barack Obama as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Interior Department, which have been at the epicenter of many of the Bush administration's most intense scientific and environmental controversies.

The agencies have different mandates - the EPA holds sway over air and water pollution, while Interior administers the nation's vast federal land holdings as well as the Endangered Species Act - but both deal with some of the country's most pressing environmental concerns, such as climate change. And over the past eight years, many career employees and rank-and-file scientists have clashed with Bush appointees over a number of those of issues, including whether the federal government should allow California to regulate tailpipe emissions from automobiles and how best to prevent imperiled species from disappearing altogether.

In June 2007, Obama told reporters in Reno, Nev., that he would not hesitate to reverse many of the environmental policies Bush has enacted by executive order.

"I think the slow chipping away against clean air and clean water has been deeply disturbing," Obama added. "Much of it hasn't gone through Congress. It was done by fiat. That is something that can be changed by an administration, in part by reinvigorating the EPA, which has been demoralized."

Global warming policies are expected to mark one of the sharpest breaks between the Obama and the Bush administrations.

EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson overruled his career advisers in deciding to deny California authority to control tailpipe emissions and rejecting their conclusion that global warming poses a threat to public welfare, and Obama is likely to reverse both of those policies shortly after taking office. This month, the president-elect told delegates to the Governors' Global Climate Summit that he would push for a federal cap-and-trade system designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and then to cut them an additional 80 percent by 2050, targets Bush has never embraced.

"Delay is no longer an option. Denial is no longer an acceptable response," Obama said in a videotaped message. "The stakes are too high, the consequences too serious."

Jamie Rappaport Clark, executive vice president of the advocacy group Defenders of Wildlife, said that together, the two agencies will help shape the government's response to climate change.

Clark, who headed the Fish and Wildlife Service under President Bill Clinton, is not a formal Obama adviser, but many of her former Clinton colleagues are helping the transition team, including David Hayes, a partner at Latham & Watkins; John Leshy, a professor at the University of California's Hastings College of the Law; and Robert Sussman, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress.

"EPA will play the lead role in crafting a regulatory response," Clark said. "Interior has a huge role to play in adaptation" -- the effort to cope with climate changes that are already happening, such as drought and more frequent wildfires.

EPA spokesman Jonathan Shradar said Wednesday that the agency is focused on finalizing policies on coal-fired power plants and other matters, but he would not speculate on the task the next administration faces: "We'll let the next team decide what their priorities will be when they get here."

With escalating responsibilities, both agencies will need more resources after years when their budgets shrank, relatively speaking. The EPA received $7.5 billion from Congress in 2008, down from $7.8 billion in 2001. Interior has fared slightly better, getting $11.1 billion compared with $10.4 billion in 2001, but that represents more than a 10 percent cut in inflation-adjusted dollars.

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who as chairwoman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee has feuded with both Johnson and Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne over global warming and other issues, said in an interview that she has high expectations of the people who will take their places.

"I'm expecting President-elect Obama to select people who really care about the issues they're in charge of, someone who believes in their mission and not someone who's going to undermine their mission," she said. "That's a sea change."

There is a long list of Democrats vying to take the helm of both agencies. The two leading contenders for EPA administrator are Mary Nichols, a favorite of Boxer's who chairs the California Air Resources Board, and Lisa Jackson, who is in the midst of switching from heading New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection to serving as chief of staff to New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine. Other possible nominees include Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen McGinty; Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles; former Sierra Club president and environmental activist Lisa Renstrom; and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a Pace University law professor and chairman of the Waterkeeper Alliance, another advocacy group.

The list for Interior is almost as long. Two House Democrats, Raul M. Grijalva (Ariz.) and Mike Thompson (Calif.) are contenders, but Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.), Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, former Oregon governor John Kitzhaber, National Trust for Historic Preservation President Richard Moe, as well as three former Interior officials - David Hayes, John Leshy and Clark at Defenders of Wildlife - have all been mentioned.

Regardless of who takes over at the agencies, the new leaders will face impatient scrutiny from green groups eager to change the government's trajectory on the environment. Frank O'Donnell, who heads the advocacy group Clean Air Watch, ticked off 10 initiatives he expects the new EPA administrator to undertake, including changing rules on emissions from coal-fired power plants and monitoring airborne lead pollution more closely.

"The Bush administration has cut so many special deals for industry that it could be a Herculean effort reversing them all," O'Donnell said. "The new team is going to have to muck out the regulatory stables."

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A program of STAR Central known as RESPECT (Rape Education Services by Peers Encouraging Conscious Thought) uses student peers facilitate change through education with emphasis on sexual violence prevention and bystander intervention. Additional information can be found on-line at http://health.uark.edu/STARCentral/index.htm and http://respect.uark.edu/ or by contacting the Director of STAR Central, Mary A. Wyandt-Hiebert, PhD, CHES at (479) 575-7252, Pat Walker Health Center, University of Arkansas, 525 North Garland, Fayetteville, AR 72701

The weblink for the Arkansas Commission on Child Abuse, Rape, and Domestic Violence is http://www.accardv.uams.edu/ A comprehensive list of agencies that assist rape victims is linked on their site at http://www.accardv.uams.edu/centers.htm and a summary of programs related to domestic violence is at

Services for victims of domestic violence both in the community and in the home. 24-hr crisis line: 479-442-9811. Shelter from abusive relationships, advocacy, support groups, follow-up services.

Death Penalty

OMNI Human Rights Committee. Contact Mark Swaney, 575-7243.

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women ...

By resolution 54/134 of 17 December 1999, the General Assembly designated 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women ...International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women .... to as "No Violence Against Women Day" and the "Day to End Violence Against Women". ...

Say No to Violence against Women!

Violence against women and girls is a universal problem of pandemic proportions. Perhaps the most pervasive human rights violation that we know today, ...International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers - Home

December 17th is International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers. ... " Violence against prostitutes is violence against women. ...

By resolution 54/134 of 17 December 1999, the General Assembly designated 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and invited governments, international organizations and NGOs to organize activities designated to raise public awareness of the problem on that day. Women's activists have marked 25 November as a day against violence since 1981. This date came from the brutal assassination in 1960, of the three Mirabal sisters, political activists in the Dominican Republic, on orders of Dominican ruler Rafael Trujillo (1930-1961).

On 20 December 1993 the General Assembly adopted Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women (A/RES/48/104).

Links to UN and UN System sites:

United Nations

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against WomenInternational Women's Day 2007Women Watch: UN Inter-agency Network on Women and Gender EqualityGender Equality & the MDGsCommission on the Status of WomenConvention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against WomenUN Division for the Advancement of Women

Imagine a world where women are free to thriveASK YOUR US SENATOR TO SUPPORT THE International Violence Against Women Act (S. 2279) --make a phone call, FAX a letter, mail it, AND sign the petition! Congressional Switchboard: 202-225-3121; 202-224-3121 Sign the IVAWA petition!Click on: http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/840/t/4142/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=617 Be sure to enter your name and address to sign the petition (scroll down the page)

BACKGROUND ! On October 31, 2007 a bill that would help empower millions of women to escape violence and poverty, the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA, S.2279) was introduced in the U.S. Senate. Help make it a reality for women worldwide! To learn more about the International Violence Against Women Act read the Sample letter below! Or go to: http://www.womensedge.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=366&Itemid=4

SAMPLE LETTER:Dear Congressperson,

We call on you to support the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA), a groundbreaking piece of legislation that would incorporate and make consistent efforts to reduce violence against women and girls in U.S. foreign assistance programs.

Violence against women is a major cause of poverty and a huge barrier to women's economic opportunity - it can keep women from getting an education, working, and earning the income they need to lift their families out of poverty. Moreover, research has shown that giving women in poor countries economic opportunity empowers them to escape and prevent violent situations. In Kerala, India, for example, a study showed that only 7 percent of women who owned property suffered from physical violence, compared to 49 percent of women with no property. The United Nations Development Fund for Women estimates that one in three women around the world will be beaten or abused in her lifetime. If the U.S. wants its efforts to reduce poverty to be as effective as possible, this has got to stop.

By promoting women's economic opportunity, addressing violence against girls in school, encouraging legal reform, working to change public attitudes, and supporting health programs and survivor services, especially in crisis situations, the I-VAWA could have a huge impact on improving the effectiveness of our foreign assistance programs and reducing poverty.

Women in poor countries already face enough barriers to lifting their families out of poverty. Violence should not be one of them. Please join us in supporting women's opportunity worldwide by supporting the International Violence Against Women Act.Patricia Burkhardt, Church Women United

UN RESOLUTIONS

Sam Cook, "New Resolution Tackles Sexual Violence in Conflict," Peace and Freedom: Magazine of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (Fall 2008). Article discusses 2 resolutions actually: 2000: Security Council Resolution 1325, and 2008: Security Council Resolution 1820. 1325 explains how ending violence against women requires a multidimensional response from many actors, of which the Security Council is one. See also the 2006 Secretary General's Study on Violence Against Women. SC Resolution 1820, the "new resolution" of the title, focuses on sexual violence. Also read in this no. of P&F "U.S. Global Duty: To Deter Violence Against Women" by Tzili Mor, supporting the International Violence Against Women Act and the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Go to: www.aiusa.org/ivawa. Contact our Arkansas congressional delegation. (Members of OMNI will want to be familiar with the WILPF, founded in 1915 by Emily Balch and Jane Addams to unite women worldwide in opposition to oppression and exploitation.) (Dick)

BOOKS (these are some of the books on women published in late 1980s and 1990s in OMNI's library)

--Whalen, Mollie. Counseling to End Violence Against Women: A Subversive Model. Sage, 1996.

OMNI SEEKS A WORLD FREE OF VIOLENCE AND THE THREAT OF WAR, A SOCIETY WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL, A COMMUNITY WHERE EVERY PERSON'S POTENTIAL MAY BE FULFILLED, AN EARTH RESTORED. GRASSROOTS NONVIOLENCE, WORLD PEACE, HUMAN RIGHTS, CIVIL LIBERTIES, SOCIAL and ECONOMIC JUSTICE, ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP PROTECTING SPECIES AND THE EARTH. These are some of OMNI's ideals. Read our brochure and our newsletters, attend our Steering Committee, become an active member of one or more of our committees, participate in our dozens of activities to see how these broad goals for building a Community of Peace are realized in action. There is nothing vague about Building a Community of Peace.

Friday, November 21, 2008

Please click on image to ENLARGE photo of Marsha Melnichak (right) and friends visiting the Fayetteville Farmer's Market on October 25, 2008.Marsha Melnichak died in her sleep Thursday night November 20, 2008, or early this morning, at Washington Regional Hospital in Fayetteville, Arkansas, I was told.Having visited her Wednesday night at the hospital, I knew her time was short. During the meeting of the Telecommunication Board on Tuesday night, several people spoke off camera of their sadness that she would likely never again attend such meetings and report on them with her clear sense of reality and highly developed ability to sort through the chaff and find the significant points of such city meetings. She earned universal respect from city workers, public officials and area residents who read her news stories.Few people reach Marsha's high level of competence and integrity in reporting the news.She covered the beginning of the mayoral campaign well, and it was clear in brief conversations in the weeks since she found herself unable to work that one of her concerns was not being able to continue her work and be on hand next Tuesday to report on the final chapter.Maybe she realized that she would not be with us by this time. Most of us did not. Her absence should be a reminder that, whatever goals we set, pursuing them with honesty, good humor and grace is as important as the result.

The Sierra Club received word yesterday that we have won a major decision; the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) will no longer be able to ignore global warming pollution caused by coal-fired power plants [1]. This victory can be the turning point in our fight for clean energy. We've stopped virtually all new coal plants dead in their tracks.This ruling means new and proposed coal plants (over 150 have been proposed in the last two years) must now go back to the drawing board to address their carbon dioxide emissions. This victory would not have been possible without your support. Will you help keep the clean energy momentum going by donating to the Sierra Club today? With coal as the single largest cause of our nation's global warming pollution, this is a critical step to ensuring a clean energy future. And it's just the beginning. The ruling gives us the framework we need to make real progress on replacing coal with new clean energy solutions that will repower our economy and help fight climate change. We need your help now more than ever. We can seize upon this decision and make it the turning point in our fight for clean energy. Please consider donating to the Sierra Club today.This major breakthrough will strengthen the efforts of Sierra Club activists from all over the country who have been engaged in fighting new coal plants. Our mandate to put an end to dirty coal has just gotten that much stronger. This ruling opens a number of new doors to our fight. From giving the Obama administration a clean slate to regulate carbon emissions to fighting for the retirement of the fleet of existing, old, dirty coal plants, there is a lot of work to get started on.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

OMNI ARMISTICE/VETERANS DAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2008 NEWSLETTER, WE, THE PEOPLE BUILDING A CULTURE OF PEACE, November 11, 2008, Compiled by Dick Bennett

HONORING THE TROOPS AND ENDING WARS

The reason why preventing wars is so important is not only to prevent slaughter and chaos, but a war once started is immensely difficult to stop. For once the war begins, zealous patriotic nationalism transforms everything. The military-industrial/financial-presidential-congressional-mainstream media-war complex locks in. An upbringing in love and the Golden Rule is turned upside down into hate and defeating "enemies." Children raised to be constructive members of communities are turned into "troops" trained to kill. Supporting sons and daughters to be kind and nurturing toward others is twisted into the slogan, "support the troops," that continues the wars.

HOW PEACEMAKERS MIGHT CELEBRATE "VETERANS DAY" 2008Listen to Nick Masullo's song, "Support the Troops: Bring Them Home." This song should, and I believe will, become nationally known and revered. And sing it yourself.Ratchet up your support for Congressman Dennis Kucinich's DEPARTMENT OF PEACE legislation. Participate in an historic citizen lobbying effort to create a U.S. Department of Peace. There is currently a bill before the U.S. House of Representatives (HR 808). This landmark measure will augment our current problem-solving options, providing practical, nonviolent solutions to the problems of domestic and international conflict. Produce a reading, staged performance or any portion of "The Gift of Peace," a play written to educate people about the Department of Peace and Nonviolence.Support all politicians who genuinely strive for peace.Begin or increase your commitment to the US Peace Memorial Foundation. Become a Founding Member or increase your donation. All contributions are cumulative, so you will be recognized for your total contributions to date. www.uspeacememorial.org/DonorsREMEMBER THE END OF WWI--ARMISTICE DAY—AND RESOLVE TO RESIST FUTURE WARSArmistice Day or Remembrance Day is celebrated around the world on November 11, the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended World War I. (Major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 with the German signing of the Armistice.) The US day is now called Veterans Day, an annual holiday honoring all US military veterans. iJOIN OMNI AND THE WORLD PEACE MOVEMENT IN PLANNING WAYS TO PREVENT WARS. Let's look ahead to ARMISTICE DAY/VETERANS DAY 2009.VETERANS FOR PEACE Chapter 134, Tacoma,Veterans Working Together for Peace & Justice Through Non-violence. ... Sat, 11/ 8/2008, Auburn Veterans Day Parade, 9:45 AM: Chapter 134 and other area

In accordance with the Veterans For Peace Statement of Purpose, ... to be between $350 to $720 million per day with costs exceeding $12 billion per month. ...

2. Big Bend Gazette :: "Arlington Southwest" planned by Big Bend ...

Oct 1, 2007 ... The purpose of the Arlington Memorials is, according to the national Veterans for Peace organization, "to make the consequences of war real, ...

1. EXCLUDED VETS WILL MARCH IN 2008 VETERANS DAY PARADE | The ...

Members of the three veterans groups who were told they couldn't march in last year's 11th Annual Long Beach Veterans Day Parade because they didn't "fit.

1. Political Affairs Magazine - Veterans Day: A Day for Peace or A ...

Not by the way veterans who stand for peace are treated in Veterans Day ceremonies! ... PA Radio #44: Victory in the 2008 Elections Begins Today ...

2. Meadville Tribune - Veterans Day speaker: We must 'take care of ...

Many marchers wore "Veterans for Peace" armbands, jackets or hats. ... Dwight Eisenhower who changed the name of the holiday to Veterans Day in 1954, ...Yoko Ono donates $10000 to veterans group peace scholarship fund ...

Oct 9, 2008 ... Browse by day posted:. Select a date, October 19, 2008, October 18, ... One of the missions of Veterans for Peace is to abolish war as an ...ARLINGTON Miami on Veterans Day Weekend - Veterans for Peace ...

Join Veterans for Peace - South Florida Chapter 032. You'll get invited to our Meetups as ... 2008 Meetup Inc. Trademarks belong to their respective owners.VAIW :: Veterans Against The Iraq War

Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan 2008 By Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans ... accurate account of what is really happening day in and day out, on the ground.

VETS SEEK TO DISPLAY REPLICA GRAVESTONES MADISON VETERANS FOR ...

Veterans Day by Madison Veterans for Peace, Clarence...walk bordering ... US Fed News Service, Including US State News; September 17, 2008 ; 193 words ...

A Pacifist Veteran Looks at Veterans Day | War Resisters League

Around the country, at least 20 Veterans for Peace chapters are leading lead their communities in Armistice/Veterans Day commemorations. ...

Vietnam Veterans Against the War

It all started in 1967, with six Vietnam veterans marching together in a peace demonstration. Now, forty-one years later, VVAW is still going strong-- ...www.vvaw.org/ - 9k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

Vietnam Veterans Against the War: History of the U.S. War in Vietnam

About the authors: Barry Romo and Peter Zastrow are members of the Chicago chapter of Vietnam Veterans Against the War. Joe Miller is a member of the ...www.vvaw.org/about/warhistory.php - 22k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

Vietnam Veterans Against the War

We create political support for opposition to US intervention around the world and at home. We also distribute materials, expose the US war moves, ...www.vvawai.org/ - 35k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

Vietnam Veterans Against the War - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) is a tax-exempt non-profit organization and corporation, originally created to oppose the Vietnam War. ...en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Veterans_Against_the_War - 86k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW)

Viet Nam Veterans Against the War was founded in 1967 and, at the height of its effectiveness in the late 1960s, claimed over 40000 members. ...www2.iath.virginia.edu/sixties/HTML_docs/Resources/Primary/Winter_Soldier/VVAW_entry.html - 9k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

vvaw.htm

Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Inc. (VVAW, Inc.) is a national veterans organization that was founded in New York City in 1967 after six Vietnam vets ...grunt.space.swri.edu/vvaw.htm - 4k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

The Turning: A History of Vietnam Veterans Against the War - Google Books Result

by Andrew Hunt - 2001 - History - 296 pages" --Maurice Isserman, Hamilton College"For all kinds of veterans of the Sixties era, this book offers powerful testimony on the meaning of patriotism...books.google.com/books?isbn=0814736351...

VAIW :: Veterans Against The Iraq War

Articles, forum, news and events, and resources for veterans opposed to the war.www.vaiw.org/ - 58k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

Peace Mom: A Mother's Journey Through Heartache to Activism - Google Books Result by Cindy Sheehan - 2006 - Biography & Autobiography - 242 pages"Writing this book is the second most difficult thing I have ever done, next to burying Casey.

September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows

Peaceful Tomorrows : Index

- Sep 5

Peaceful Tomorrows is an advocacy organization founded by family members of September Eleventh victims. Its mission is to seek effective nonviolent ...www.peacefultomorrows.org/ - 26k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

About

More results from peacefultomorrows.org »

1. Peaceful Tomorrows : About Us

Peaceful Tomorrows is an organization founded by family members of those killed on September 11th who have united to turn our grief into action for peace. ...www.peacefultomorrows.org/article.php?list=type&type=12 - 21k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

2. September Eleventh Families for Peaceful Tomorrows - Wikipedia ...

September Eleventh Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, also known as 9/11 Families for Peaceful Tomorrows or simply Peaceful Tomorrows, is an anti-war ...Democracy Now! | September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows ...

Nearly seven years ago, a group of family members of those killed on Sept. 11 united to advocate for a nonviolent response to the attacks on the World Trade ...Amazon.com: September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows ...

September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows is honored to share with our friends and allies the work of LaOnf - an extraordinary network of Iraqi peace ...Peaceful Tomorrows | FORpeace

Aug 27, 2008 ... Over the past couple months, FOR has partnered with Peaceful Tomorrows (an organization that FOR fiscally sponsored, when it began in late

USATODAY.com - Bush accused of exploiting 9/11

"Our message to all politicians is, 'Keep your hands off Ground Zero,' " said David Potorti, of Cary, N.C., a member of Peaceful Tomorrows, ...RABBI WASKOW, THE SHALOM CENTER"A Prophetic Voice in Jewish, Multireligious, and American LifeMaking Armistice Day/ Veterans Day Real"Ninety years ago today, at 11 o'clock on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, World War I ended. It was supposed to be the "war to end all wars" - but see how we have worse than wasted those 90 years! For many years in the United States, November 11 was Armistice Day. Now it is Veterans Day, when we honor those who at the call of an American government, no matter how misguided the call, risked their lives and limbs and minds and even souls. But we can truly honor them only when we stop creating new dead and maimed, new veterans -- when there are no more rockets' red glare, bombs bursting in air. Two years ago, at the initiative of The Shalom Center, 85 rabbis and four cantors from all the branches of the Jewish religious tree signed A JEWISH CALL TO HEAL GOD'S WORLD BY WEAVING WORLD COMMUNITY......

Shalom, salaam, peace --- Arthur

A JEWISH CALL TO HEAL GOD'S WORLD

BY WEAVING WORLD COMMUNITYThe human race -- adam -- and the planet in which we live -- adamah -- are in the midst of a world-wide earthquake: political, economic, technological, military, religious, ecological.One possible response is to try to control this earthquake through top-down, unaccountable power. Another is to try to reverse the history of the last several centuries and return to a remembered version of the pre-Modern world. A third is to reweave the web of life-forms and cultures into a richer planetary community in which power and decision-making begins at the grass-roots. Jewish tradition and our history warn us against an approach to controlling the world that depends upon top-down, unaccountable, arrogant power: the approach of Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, Rome, the Inquisition, the Tsar.Our tradition and our history also warn us against trying to restore the past, as we recall the Name God spoke to Moses at the crisis of the Burning Bush: "Ehyeh asher ehyeh, I Will Be Who I Will Be." Jewish tradition and Jewish history teach us to seek the third alternative: to weave world community across boundaries of religion and nationality -- for the sake of the human race, which suffers deeply from war, and for the sake of healing our endangered planet and its wounded web of life.Yet the present policies of the US government have done much to sever the threads of world community and to begin creating a pyramidal structure of top-down, unaccountable military and corporate power to control the world. And in several religious communities, violence by national governments and terrorist groups has attempted to turn the calendar back to an imaginary earlier, world in which women, other communities, and the earth itself stayed in their "places" -- subordinate.So we covenant with each other to draw from Jewish wisdom how to walk the path of healing into a just and compassionate future, to seek peace, justice, the healing of the earth, and a planetary community made up of richly diverse cultures. We call for specific changes that are rooted in this vision, and intend to keep growing and working together as the transformation of our world unfolds.

1. We call for an immediate decision by Congress to set a time-table to bring safely home all US troops, contractors, and mercenaries from Iraq, by a date certain not later than Rosh Hashanah 5768 -- September 2007 -- and to support the creation of a UN peacekeeping body that can swiftly midwife the achievement of self-determination by the Iraqi people

2. We call on the US government to insist on the convening of an Emergency International Conference on Peace in the Middle East, committed to achieve a full peace settlement among Israel, Palestine, all Arab states, and Iran, including mutual recognition of legitimate national rights of all the parties -- and in the pursuit of these goals, to carry on direct discussions with all the governments concerned.

3. We are profoundly concerned by the damage that human ignorance and arrogance are inflicting on God's creation of the web of life on earth. We especially call on the US government and on state and local governments, religious communities, businesses, labor unions, and universities to take all possible steps to avert the climate crisis of global scorching. We call on us all to maximize the use of sustainable, non-nuclear, non-polluting, non-CO2-producing sources of energy; to radically diminish the use of fossil fuels; and to provide public review and accountability for the present top-down, unaccountable power of Big Oil and Big Coal.

4. We call on the US government to ratify and carry out a series of existing and pending treaties to strengthen the fabric of world community. These include treaties to ban land mines, forbid the recruitment of children as soldiers, empower the International Criminal Court and accept its jurisdiction, define international terrorism as a war crime subject to ICC jurisdiction, and roll back carbon-dioxide emissions; to reaffirm, fully enforce, and open US courts to hear cases under the Geneva Conventions and other treaties against torture; and to modify "free trade" treaties and laws so as to protect workers, consumers, and the earth.

5. We call on the US government to commit 5% of the American Gross Domestic Product for each of the next twenty years to eliminating global poverty, homelessness, inadequate education, and inadequate health care; to assisting women and families throughout the world to make reproductive choices; and to encouraging grass-roots empowerment of people, throughout the world.

6. We call on the US government to make sure that all religious communities, majority and minority, are accorded the same legal and cultural freedom and respect. In response to specific contemporary dangers, we are especially concerned that Muslims and Muslim institutions be accorded legal freedom and cultural respect for their persons, their exercise of religious freedom, and their communal spaces and practices, as we have long asserted must be accorded Jews, Christians, and others.

7. We commit ourselves to speak out in public -- in the name of Torah and the values of the Jewish people -- against unethical and immoral actions by any government or politico-military group. We are especially concerned by acts that go beyond using violence in absolutely unavoidable self-defense,. We believe this standard must be used to measure the US government's occupation of Iraq and its willingness to use torture; the use of terror attacks against civilians by various Palestinian, Iraqi, Lebanese, and other groups; and the Israeli government's attacks on civilians and their vital infrastructure in Gaza and Lebanon, as well as aspects of the 39-year Israeli occupation of Palestinian land and people that may go far beyond self-defense.

8. We covenant with each other, with the Jewish community, and with the Holy One of Blessing to work together beyond this public statement to make its vision real.

9. And we commit ourselves to work with Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs, and those of other religious, spiritual, and ethical communities not only for "interfaith dialogue" but for multireligious action to heal God's world and for multireligious affirmation of the Unity that calls us all together.

Rabbi Katy Z. Allen, et al.

HEADLINES

Iraq War Veteran Joins Ranks of War Resisters

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2008/11/11-1

Iraq and Afghanistan War Veterans Join the Homeless

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2008/11/11-3

BOOKS ABOUT US WARS AND VETERANS(a minute sample of the thousands of the books available to all who choose to know).

ILLUSIONS AND DECEITS

Paul Buchheit, ed. American Wars: Illusions and Realities. Clarity, 2008. I strongly recommend this book; it is sure to change Veterans Day for the better. Americans Value Honor. We Fight for the Right Reasons: Illusion 1: We fight for peace and democracy. Illusion 2: We fight to defend our personal freedoms. Americans Value Truthfulness. We Can Believe Our Decision-Makers. Illusion 3: Our Government Tells Us the Truth About Our Wars. Illusion 4: We Stay in Iraq to Prevent Further Bloodshed Among Iraqis. Illusion 5: The Mainstream Media Gives Us Balanced Reporting. Etc. for 19 Illusions. For related books see Buchheit's Endnotes.

THE WARS: HISTORY OF US INTERVENTIONS AND INVASIONS

Robert Kagan. Dangerous Nation: America's Place in the World from Its Earliest Days to the Dawn of the Twentieth Century. Knopf, 2006.

William Blum. Rogue State; Killing Hope. Each US intervention and invasion described.

Saunders, Nancy. Combat by Trial: An Odyssey with 20th Century Winter Soldiers. iUniverse, 2008. "…the compelling personal story of a Vietnam War protester and her fellow activists. It is also a grim reminder of how intimidating the government can be when citizens dare to assert themselves in a righteous but radical cause."

IRAQ/AFGHAN WARS

Stiglitz and Bilmes. The Three Trillion Dollar War. Norton, 2008.

Wright and Dixon, eds. Dissent, Voices of Conscience: Government Insiders Speak Out Against the War in Iraq. Koa, 2008.

Patrick Cockburn. The Occupation: War and Resistance in Iraq. Verso, 2006.

REJECTING WARS

The History

Murray Polner and Thomas Woods, Jr., eds. We Who Dared to Say No to War: American Antiwar Writing from 1812 to Now. Basic, 2008.

20th Century

Walter Wink, ed. Peace Is the Way. Orbis, 2000.

Barry Miles. Peace: 50 Years of Protest. Readers Digest, 2008.

Ken Kolsbun. Peace: The Biography of a Symbol. National Geographic, 2008.

A Force More Powerful: a book, PBS series, a game, www.aforcemorepowerful.org

International Center on Nonviolent Conflict, www.nonviolentconflict.org

OMNI SEEKS A WORLD FREE OF WAR AND THE THREAT OF WAR, A SOCIETY WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL, A COMMUNITY WHERE EVERY PERSON'S POTENTIAL MAY BE FULFILLED, AN EARTH RESTORED. GRASSROOTS NONVIOLENCE, WORLD PEACE, HUMAN RIGHTS, SOCIAL and ECONOMIC JUSTICE, ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP PROTECTING SPECIES AND THE EARTH. These are OMNI's ideals. Read our brochure and our newsletters, attend our Steering Committee, become an active member of one or more of our committees, participate in our activities to see how these broad goals are realized in action. There is nothing vague about Building a Culture of Peace.

Robert McAfee, of Hackett, AR, one of the 1,000 trained by Al Gore, has been awarded the first ever grant from The Climate Project (TCP) (www.theclimateproject.org) to fund a statewide coalition Repower Arkansas. The coalition formed to promote awareness of the importance of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, creating renewable power and green collar jobs. The strategy of the coalition is to develop a citizen alert network to inform the Arkansas General Assembly that the public wants the recommendations from the Arkansas Governor’s Commission to be adopted as law. By enacting these policy options many new green collar jobs can be created. This is a real opportunity for Arkansas to become a leader in repowering energy supplies with clean, renewable energy sources like solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and others. Robert is a climatologist and an environmental educator. Since December 2006 he has given over 50 presentations of Mr. Gore’s slide show. Four other Arkansas TCP presenters, Kevin Smith, of Helena, Brent Robinson, Fayetteville, Robert Huston, Van Buren, and Cindy Fribourgh of Little Rock will also work with the coalition. Robert and Kevin served on the Governor’s Commission on Global Warming. The final report of the commission was presented to Governor Beebe on October 31. Over the next three months members of the coalition will travel to communities around the state to discuss the climate crisis with citizens and share the opportunity of green collar jobs for economic development. Green-collar jobs pay family wages and provide opportunities for advancement for a career with increasing skills and wages. While some green jobs require advanced technical skills, most are middle-skill jobs requiring more education than high school, but less than a four-year degree. Much of the work to green our economy involves transforming the places that we live and work, and the way we travel. Repower Arkansas will enlist the support of citizens to inform the General Assembly of the publics growing desire for clean energy and green jobs. The first event will be November 18th at the University of Arkansas at Monticello, from 7-10pm. These presentations will incorporate the major themes of the Climate Project and The WE Can Solve It Campaign with Arkansas specific applications from the Global Warming Commission’s policy options.Further information can be obtained at www.repowerarkansas.org. CONTACTS: Robert McAfee Robert@repowerarkansas.org; Joanna Pollock Planetworkscom@gmail.com; Charlotte Wales walescharlotte@hotmail.com.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

This outstanding documentary series outlines the challenges faced by humanity in the grip of global environmental change, making a strong case for mankind's own contribution to this life threatening problem. Not limited to climate change, The Planet examines global changes brought about by overpopulation, the destruction of plants and animals, high levels of consumption, growing economies and industrialized farming. Swedish filmmakers Michael Stenberg, Linus Torell, Johan Söderberg take this serious material to the next level, using unconventional aerial photography, archived instructional films and a thriving soundtrack to bring a scientific subject into the realm of artistic, contemporary documentary. Environmental experts interviewed for the series include Pulitzer Prize and National Medal of Science winner Jared Diamond ("Guns, Germs and Steel"), author and Stanford professor Gretchen Daily, Herman Daly, Will Steffen, George Monbiot, Norman Myers and Lester Brown.

Part 1: Global ChangeThe first episode of The Planet attempts to correct our use of the term "climate change", arguing that what humanity really faces is change to all aspects of the biosphere, including the decimation of resources, ongoing damage to natural services such as pollination, and the widespread extinction of plants and animals. This is a global change – one that reaches beyond the climate. Because it's global, it's a marked example of our growing dependence on the behavior of other nations.

The first people to feel such global changes are often the most unlikely – Inuit hunters whose fish are suffering mutations from e-waste, Australian ranchers fighting raging bushfires, Portuguese farmers facing ceaseless droughts, year in year out. We all share the planet, and the decisions we make now will affect not only our own lives, but the future of the whole world.

A panel will discuss recent books that examine contemporary business in the U. S. and its impact on the citizens. The panel was arranged prior to the bailout of the banks, which made the subject even more urgent. $700 billion rescued banks without any guaranteed return to the public for its investment or any requirement that they use at least some of the money for the mortgage-burdened people. They were free to use the money to buy other banks, pay dividends to stockholders, or give executives a bonus. As of the end of October, almost four weeks after the bailout became law, officials were just beginning to talk about helping a few strapped homeowners to keep the foreclosure wolf from the door. How did this situation happen? How did US capitalism become so irresponsibly, powerfully rapacious, our recent Presidents so unconscionably cooperative, and our Congress so complicitly supine? These books give the historical background.

The Panelists are Claire Detels, UA Prof. Emer.; Max Greenwood (John Gray, Mayor of Greenland, was to have been a panelist, but he is recovering a motorcycle accident); John Rule, retired teacher, farmer; and Larry Woodall, retired businessman.

The books to be discussed are: Confessions of an Economic Hitman by John Perkins; Unequal Protection: The Rise of Corporate Dominance and the Theft of Human Rights by Thom Hartmann; Free Lunch: How the Wealthiest Americans Enrich Themselves at Government Expense (And Stick You with the Bill) by Robert Johnston; Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism by Naomi Klein.

--The Globalization of Poverty and the New World Order by Michel Chossudovsky. 2008. In this new and expanded edition of Chossudovsky international best-seller, the author outlines the contours of a New World Order which feeds on human poverty and the destruction of the environment, generates social apartheid, encourages racism and ethnic strife and undermines the rights of women.

--Fraser, Steve. Wall Street. Also interv. by Moyers. Includes loss of democratic populism by Democratic Party. Cp. Twain's Golden Age about late 19th c. rapacity and inequality. Also "Inequality and the American Dream" in The Economist.

-- Speth, James Gustave. The Bridge at the Edge of the World: Capitalism, the Environment, and Crossing from Crisis to Sustainability. Yale UP, 2008. Blind faith in economic growth is ruining the planet. Rev. The Interdependent (Spring 2008) (UNA-USA magazine); "…my conclusion…is that most environmental deterioration is a result of systemic failures of the capitalism that we have today and that long-term solutions must seek transformative change in the key features of this contemporary capitalism."

----Big Think presents a short video of Columbia University economist Joseph Stiglitz explaining how foreign governments are buying America. See (with Linda Bilmes) his The Three Trillion Dollar War. http://www.boingboing.net/2008/09/16/joseph-stiglitz-how.html

--Waldman, Michael. Who Robbed America? A Citizen's Guide to the Savings and Loan Scandal.